Milking parlor



July 26, 1949. H. B. BABSON ETAL MILKING PARLOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 25, `1946 v TV@ 74 4 July 26, 1949. v H. B. BABsoN Erm. 2,477,035

MILKING PARLOR 3 Shee'ts-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 25, 1946 July 26, 1949. H. B. BASSON ETAL MILKING PARLOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ,fyi

Filed Feb. 25, 1946 Patented July 26, 1949 UNITED STATES rTENT oFFlcE MILKING PARLOR Henry B. Babson, Chicago, and Chester A. Thomas, Crystal Lake, Ill., assignors to Babson Bros. Co., a corporation of Illinois Application February 25, 194,6, Serial No. 649,924

'l Claims.

This invention relates to a more particularly to an improved parlor milking parlor construction.

The present application is primarily concerned with improvements in a milking parlor and stall arrangement of the general type shown in Babson and stampen Reissue Patent 22,657 of August 7, 1945.

We have found it highly desirable to arrange a plurality of parlor stalls in a milking parlor in zigzag or stepped relationship, as disclosed and claimed in the above-mentioned reissue patent; and to have the cow floor (the floor on which the cows walk and on which the stalls are placed) at a higher level than the operators floor or alley. If there is something in the neighborhood of a couple of feet difference in the floor levels the operator can place milking machines in operation and remove them from under the cow at a level which is much more convenient and which greatly reduces the effort otherwise necessary if the operator must stoop to a low level to put the machine into and remove it from milking position. The desired stepped relationship of the stalls, however, requires an irregular margin on the upper fioor, and this has heretofore always been carried down with a similarly formed stepped or zigzag wall extending to the level of the oor of the operators alley. We have found that this makes cleaning of the operators alley particularly difficult, and has heretofore resulted in spilled milk and other waste and dirt collecting in the corners of the zigzag wall rising from the iioor of the operators alley; yet it has heretofore been thought impossible to have a, straight wall, with an easilycleaned junction with the operators floor, since the operator must be able to get in close to the back end of the stall where thecows udder is during handling of the milking machines.

We have overcome this difficulty by making use of a regularly formed wall, as contrasted with a zigzag wall having right angle corners therein, rising from the floor of the operators alley along aline back from the projecting ends of the stalls; and then by having the floor supporting the stalls with at least a portion of its irregular margin projecting out overA this wall. The critical point of juncture, ofcourse, is the juncture of the rising wall with the floor of the operators alley; and the fact that a higher level has zigzags or sharp angles in its does not prevent ready and effective cleaning as long as the juncture line between the wall and the operators oor is regularly formed. We are 4using this term "regularly milking parlor, and stall and 2 formed in the sense of a wall which does not have dihedral angles (that is, sharp and sudden changes in direction), but which may be curved as well as straight, since some milking parlors have the stalls arranged in a circle. The point is to avoid sharp corners and angles.

Yet another feature of this invention is the provision of an improved feeding trough and chute arrangement at the end of each parlor stall, facilitating feeding a grain supplement, for example, to the cows during milking. We have found it very desirable, for example, to give each cow a measured amount of grain during milking (as two pounds), and to provide the necessary variation between feed quantities for different cows in further feeding immediately after the milking has been completed and in a different location, as in a loafing` barn or back in the main barn. In order to feed grain in this manner to each cow during milking. a measured amount must be provided for the stall each time a new cow is brought into the stall, generally about once every three minutes; and previous feeding trough arrangements have not enabled this to be done with the requisite convenience.

Other features and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following specication and the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of milking parlor embodying our inventions; Figure 2 is a horizontal fragmentary sectional view, partly broken away, and ywith the stalls removed, to show the relationship between the supporting Wall and the floor of the operators alley; Figure 3 is an enlarged plan view principally consisting of a single stall; Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the apparatus shown in Figure 3 taken along line 4 of Figure 3; Figure 5 is a transverse vertical sectional view along the line 5-5 of Figure 3; and Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view of the feeding trough and chute,- along the line 6-6 of Figure l l In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated herewith three parlor stalls designated in general as Ill, II and I2 are shown as aranged in zigzag or' stepped relationship (in accordance with the teachings of the abovementioned Reissue Patent 22,657, to which reference may be made to supplement the present disclosure if desired) on the cow floor I3, the higher level floor of the two floors in the milking parlor barn here indicated in general as I4. The other side' of the milking parlor barn is here indicated as provided with a floor I5 at a lower corresponding Vinto theoperators alley; l

13b and I3c, these triangular portions each hav'- ing one long side and one short side and in general having an area of the same order as that 'ofV half the area required for each stall. Between the cow floor I3 and the operator oor I .'iis'aY supporting wall I6, this ,wall being regularly formed; that is, with no sharp! angles orchanges of directions, the particular wall shown. here be- Y ing straight. As may be bestfunderstoodfrom Figures 2 and 5, the saw tooth shaped margin of the upper floor consisting of the triangular por-- tions Isa, I3b and I3c' projects out from this wall I6, so that at the level o fthejcow floor the margin is irregular. j Nevertheless, since the-wall le is regularly formedgthe ljunction' line between the wall l5 andthe licor I 5.0iA the, operators level is regular ani-Without anysharp irregularities, so that it maybe readily completelyY cleaned as by flushing with ahose-or sweeping with a broom. Referring nowimorefparticularly to LFigures 3 and 4; and ,describingthe-stall Hasrepresentative,v it will beseen; that, 'each stall comprisesv a triangular section, as V,its basicor mainframework.Y v-In the-steli I I, iorexample, this triangular Yframe comprises -theverticalmembers or posts 2I,--22and 23, Withtheir lower ends setV in the concrete of the. cow'oor I3, andwith their Vupper ends held infthe desired' relationshipv by Vbracing members zdfzand 2li,A generally of pipe'. The posts 2| 'and23 areontheside ofLthegstall toward theoperators alley-,jwhilethe post22 is on the opposite side of 'thestallgasmay' be best seen in Figure 3; and'this'latter; post serves as the pivotal mounting means for: entrance and' exit'gates here identified inv general. as 2f! andi28,.` Manual op.- erating means incll'ldingthe'handle 29, riser member and intercohnectinglinkage 3| 'serves to enable the'gategzl tobenioved. between opened and closed positionarrd locked in closed position; and handle 32; :riser member 33 and connecting linkage 34 serversimilarlyfforthe exit gate 28. The general construction'Y and operation ofV such gates vand .their'action maybe further gone into if desired byreierence tojthe above-mentioned Reissue-Patent 22,6511 or the copending Thomas application Serial 522,883,'fl1ed February 18, 1944. The'exit'gate 2B cooperates with the vertical post 35 of the next stallinthelinef'offparlor stalls, to`V the" post 12|"of the .stall just described. Y l Referringfnow morsi-particularly to Figures 4;

5 and 6,it. will be seenthat eachstallis provided in the Yendtl'iere'of with a feeding trough', as Vthe trough Adll, this peferablybeing bel-linda shield member 4I adapted to minimize the amountof feed which the cow may accidentally knock over n order to prevent any feed from :'being' forced upa-over the end of the trougli'dufand 'out through the end of the stall,v Y an end plate llZ is yprovided forfa similar shielding purpose'. Heretofore proper shielding ofthe feed trough hasl renderedA its frequent filling rather diiiicult, and we have obviated this 'diiiiculty by providing a chute 43, inthe end ofeach stall com.-

municating throughtheopeningV 42a. withk the, interior of the trough 4Il.V By locating this chute` in the end of thejstall it isout of the way, not,

interfering with operation of the handles 29 and 32 controlling the position of the gates nor pro-V Y jecting out into the normal walking -path of an operator so that he might catch his clothes, bruise his arm, or the like. On the other hand,

the chute is in a location and at a level where lilling the trough with a measured amount of grain or feed is verylconvenient; asgthe stepped arrangement of the floormargin suchthat the operator can step rig-ht'up to the chute when he desires to do so. Moreover, Yits location is such that ,unnecessary walking is minimized, as the operator can turn to his left hand, ll the feed trough of a stall intowhich has has just admitted a cow, andren which a mllker has been placed, thenV turn,v without further walking, to the right to open the gates of theV next stall, let out the cow that has just been milked, admit a new cow and place a machine in operation on the new cow. While we have shown and described certain embodimentsfof our invention, it is to be'under- Y f stood that itis capableioV many modications.

Changes, therefore, in.vtheconstruction'and arrangement'may be made without departing from the spirit andscopeiof the invention fas disclosed in the appended claims.l Y

Weclaim; Y y ,v r

1f. A milking parlor comprising: an operators door at arcertain levelpa cow floor at a higher level, said' cow door, having anirregular margin at leastpartlyprojecting,overand spaced above the. opera'tnrs.v iloor :1 and. afpluralty of stalls on the cow :door having portionsvthereof; directly above the operators floor adjacentl said margin.

2.' A milking parlor comprising: an' operators floor `at acertainzlevel, this lloor having aiwall rsing-therefromand characterized by an absence oi dihedraliangles; a cowriiooratfa higher level, said cow door having an irregular margin supported by said wall andai; least partly proj eeting over and spaced aboveztheoperators floor; and

a plurality ofy stalls on the. cow floor havingy portions thereof directly above? the operators iioor adjacentY said margin. Y l

3. A milkingy parlor comprising: an Yoperators door ata certain level, oor'havinga wall Y rising therefrom anclfcharacterized by an absence of dihedralangles; a cow iioorat` a higher level, said cow door having a. saws-tooth shaped. margin supported by said wall and at least partly projecting over and spaced. above Athe operatorsA iloor; and a Vplurality of stalls. on the cow floor having portions'. thereof directly above the operators iioor adjacentsaid margin. Y

4. A milking parlor comprising: an operators licor at a certain level,V this floor having a Wall rising therefrom and characterizedby an absence of'dihedral angles;l `a oowoor ata higher. level, said cow door having asaw-Atooth shaped mar'- gin supported by 'said Wall and at least partly pro- Y j'ecting over and 'spaced abovethe'operators oor; andv a plurality of stalls von the cow floor having portions thereof directly above the operators hoor adjacent said margin; each saw-tooth portion having one'edge with a length of the same order as that of a stall and the'other edge with a length approaching the widthof a stall, each such portion at least Ypartly supporting a stall.

5. A milking parlorcomprising: 'an operators Hoor Yat a certain-level; a cowfloor' at a higher level, said cow floor having a Ys aw-toothshaped margin; and' a plurality of stalls in stepped arrangement on the cow oor adjacent said margin, each saw-tooth portionhaving one edge with a length of the same.' order asV thatV of a stall and Y the other edge with a length approaching the Width of a stall, each such portion at least partly supporting a stall and each stall having a feed trough and feed chute xedly attached at one end thereof, each stall having a substantial portion thereof spaced from and projecting over the operators floor.

6. A milking parlor comprising: an operators floor at a certain level; a cow floor at a higher level, said cow floor having a saw-tooth shaped margin; and a plurality of stalls in stepped arrangement on the cow iloor adjacent said margin, each saw-tooth portion having one edge with a length of the same order as that of a stall and the other edge with a length approaching the width of a stall, each such portion at least partly supporting a stall and each stall having a feed trough and feed chute at one end thereof, each chute overhanging said other edge of the saw-tooth portion supporting the stall.

7. A milking parlor comprising: an operators floor at a certain level; a cow floor at a higher 6 level; and a plurality of stalls in stepped arrangement on said floor, each stall having a substantial portion thereof spaced from and projecting over the operators floor and including a feed trough and feed chute at one end thereof.

HENRY B. BABSON. CHESTER A. THOMAS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

